Officials said Tuesday that Fisker has agreed to buy the plant for $18 million and will spend another $175 million to refurbish it over three years.

Vice President Joe Biden was among those on hand to announce a new lease on life for the GM plant, which produced the Saturn Sky and Pontiac Solstice roadsters, as well as an Opel version that was exported to Europe, before closing this summer.

Fisker recently received approval for $528.7 million in government loans to develop plug-ins, and the next-generation cars to be built in Delaware are expected to reach showrooms by 2012.